The Vanishing of Billy Buckle

Wings & Co #3

by Sally Gardner

The famous fairy detective agency, Wings & Co., has a big problem. Well, quite a few of them actually.

There's the missing giant, Billy Buckle, who has vanished without a trace, and left his giant daughter with the detectives. There's a surprise visit to the seaside, which uncovers a murder and a stolen diamond. And then there's that tricky business of the TV talent show...

Squat on a squid, this is Emily, Buster and Fidget's most complicated case yet!

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Middle Grade, Mystery, Fiction, Crime

224 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2013

About the author

AKA Wray Delaney

Sally Gardner grew up and still lives in London. Being dyslexic, she did not learn to read or write until she was fourteen and had been thrown out of several schools, labeled unteachable, and sent to a school for maladjusted children. Despite this, she gained a degree with highest honors at a leading London art college, followed by a scholarship to a theater school, and then went on to become a very successful costume designer, working on some notable productions.

After the births of twin daughters and a son, she started first to illustrate and then to write picture books and chapter books, usually with fairytale- or otherwise magical subject matter. She has been called 'an idiosyncratic genius' by London’s Sunday Times.

Reviews

[Alexia🎀]

Vreau și a 4 a carteee

[Lydia]

Wings & Co. is back for another adventure/mystery! This time, they are dealing with a disappearance, a robbery and a murder. On top of that, the keys are behaving strangely, they have a visiting giantess child who at any moment could out grow the shop and then the shop decides to go for an amble!

I finally figured it out. This series feels like a mash-up of fairy lore and Sayer's early Lord Peter Wimsey books. The mystery elements are a mix of fairly easy figuring out the deal with the seagull to more difficult figuring out the deal with Billy Buckle and the robbery... and the murder, which helps keep the reader thinking and guessing. However, this isn't in the "thriller" genre, there are moments that are tense, but not the whole story, which helps give you time to think through the mystery (which I quite like).

Content notes: No language or sensuality issues; mostly threatened or already happened violence (the murder happens "off-page" and is never gorily described), with a slight magical-transformational-battle that everyone survives (mostly? They survive the battle, it's the after affects that get them in the end).

[Mehsi]

The third book in this installation, and wow. I can say it gets better with every book. I loved the first book, of course, but if I compare that one and this one, there is a difference.

I loved this book, more mysteries. And this time we got a few new characters. Giants, scary transforming monsters (even more of a baddie than the previous enemies) and a moving house.

The characters were great, especially Emily. How even though she still has no clue as to how the store works, she keeps going, trying her best and even (and I was truly cheering for that) getting angry at Buster and giving him a piece of her mind. Go girl! Keep it up! Buster really needs that, he is, and probably will be for some time (though I hope not for long) a prick, a mean guy who just can't accept that he won't grow up.

Fidget, a Fidget, still a mystery at times, but he is a really awesome character and I love him and how he does his best for Emily. Tries to keep her safe and be there for her whenever she needs a shoulder to cry on, or a person whom she can talk to.

The mystery itself was really fun and I had really much pleasure in helping Emily and Buster as they went through stuff. I loved the new characters, and I hope our Giant dad and Giant Daughter will one day make a new appearance.

I already pre-ordered the 4th volume in this wonderful series. I can't wait until it comes out!

I would also recommend this book to everyone. :)

[Luna's Little Library]

Reading a Wings & Co book is always a joy because you know you’ll have Sally Gardner’s wonderful word- and worldcraft. (Hopefully that sentence works… I’m no word genius.)

I’ve said it before and I’ll keep repeating it – I adore these books. They just have everything I could want: amazing and imaginative writing, wonderful characters and of course the brilliant world they inhabit. Which is pretty close to ours, just that little bit more magical. ;)

In the The Vanishing of Billy Buckle the shop has packed up and moved (because occasionally it does) to Puddliepool-on-Sea. Emily, Fidget and Buster are trying to look after Primrose, a not-so-small-giant-but-still-little girl who is fast outgrowing the shop while they find her missing father.

I read this book immediately upon finishing The Three Pickled Herrings and enjoyed it just as much.

[Felicia]

I love this series! It has fabulous characters that are weird and quirky. David Roberts illustrations are fantastic. If you love 6ft cats, who love fish paste sandwiches, magic lamps that wear moroccan slippers, keys with little wings and boots, and fairies of every sort, this is the book series for you!

[Mira de la curiosithèque]

Ou Millie Mystère 3, le train fantôme, publié chez Milan !
Le mystère est à son comble : le père de Primevère, la petite fille géante, a disparu, en la laissant aux bons soins de Millie et compagnie ; à Londres, un diamant a été volé et voilà qu’on retrouve un cadavre dans un dancing à Gadouille-plage !
Toujours un univers inventif et drôle, dont les personnages sont farfelus et portent des noms amusants.
Dans ce tome, on suit une vraie enquête policière : je me suis régalée !

[Ama Cititoarea😜:-)]

Incepi sa te plictisesti la al doilea volum sau la al treilea.😒

[Carina Citeste]

Mi-a plăcut foarte mult această carte ,dar pentru mine s-a citit destul de greu asa ca o recomand tuturor celor cu vârsta de peste 11 ani🤩

[Rita]

Good to read aloud for 3rd or 4th graders.

[Poppy]

It was ok

[Marlana]

Despite being in my mid-twenties, I read and enjoy a lot of juvenile fiction. There is just something about a juvenile character's sense of wonder, self-discovery, and sense of adventure that you cannot find in adult lit.

Every now and then, however, I come across a series like this that I don't particularly enjoy because of (I assume) my age. This is not the sort of tale that is ageless. In fact, despite the colorful characters not much happens in Gardner's Wings & Co. series. The writing is getting better with each book and the plot itself both in this particular book and the series as a whole is not bad, but there is something missing.

I wonder if 10 year old Marlana would have liked this series more, but then again, 10 year old Marlana had very discerning tastes.

I think, then, this series is best for young readers (eight to nine year olds?) who aren't the choosiest of readers and won't notice the lack of character development, plot advancement, or even the absence of a good mystery in what is a mystery novel.

[Barbara]

Emily Vole, the Keeper of the Keys, is faced with a bit of a dilemma. Not only are the keys misbehaving, but Billy Buckle, a giant, has left his daughter Primrose with Emily and the rest of the appropriately-named Wings & Co. detective agency. But she's growing by leaps and bounds, and can barely fit in the house. Meanwhile, the house itself moves the whole crew to the seaside where Emily needs to solve a murder and locate a missing diamond. How can all these matters be related? As readers will quickly learn, there are some interesting connections behind Billy's disappearance and the other events. This title, just like the others in this series from Great Britain, is funny and engaging, and has interesting characters such as Fidget the Cat and the all-too vein Theo Callous. The detailed illustrations add to the book's pleasures, and readers will quickly become addicted to the characters and clamor for more.

[Cara]

Gardner does a good job of summarizing the plots of previous volumes at the beginning of the book, but it may be a lot to follow for those who are new to the series. The characters are difficult to tell apart by name because there is no character development to make each person stand out to the reader, although this development may have happened in previous volumes. Simple, pen-and-ink illustrations help bring the story to life. The complicated plot pulls many mysteries together, so at times the book may be difficult for young readers to follow, but the author employs enjoyable dialogue and intriguing plot points involving theft, murder and magical characters. Fans of the series and children in grades 4-6 who enjoy mysteries will find this volume to be a satisfying read.

[Allison]

Another Wings & Co, another stellar book. Loved.

[Mt. Lebanon Public Library]

Elizabeth S.'s Pick
Call #: j GARDNER Sally

[Lynn]

Detective novel for grades 2-5. I like the illustrations. I think kids will like the playful nature and the magic aspect. Cute book.

[wen]

3.5* fun and interesting mystery! :) nice middle grade read